What’s The Average SAT Score?

The “average SAT score” depends on a lot on which version of the test you took, which year you took it in, and a number of other factors.

At Prep Expert, we offer great SAT prep courses to help your child earn the best score possible.

For an idea of what the average SAT score looks like across the United States, we have that covered in the infographic below:

National SAT Average Score

Total

ERW

Math

1060

533

527

*ERW – ‘Evidence-Based Reading and Writing Section’

SAT Average Score By Sex

Sex

Percent

Total

ERW

Math

Female

53%

1050

534

516

Male

47%

1070

532

538

SAT Average Score By Ethnicity

Ethnicity/Race

Percent

Total

ERW

Math

American Indian/Alaska Native

0%

963

486

477

Asian

9%

1181

569

612

Black/African American

13%

941

479

462

Hispanic/Latino

24%

990

500

489

Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander

0%

986

498

488

White

44%

1118

565

553

Two or More Races

3%

1103

560

544

No Response

5%

961

475

485

SAT Average Score By High School GPA

Grade

Percent

Total

ERW

Math

A+ (97-100)

6%

1254

626

628

A (93-96)

18%

1187

595

592

A- (90-92)

17%

1122

564

558

B (80-89)

41%

1005

508

497

C (70-79)

10%

899

456

444

D, E, or F (below 70)

1%

850

429

421

No Response

7%

987

489

498

SAT Average Score By Parent Education Level

Highest Parental Education Level

Percent

Total

ERW

Math

No High School Diploma

8%

944

472

472

High School Diploma

28%

1003

507

497

Associate Degree

8%

1036

525

511

Bachelor’s Degree

28%

1118

562

556

Graduate Degree

20%

1177

591

586

No Response

9%

914

455

460

SAT Average Score By State & US Territory

State

Number of Testers

ERW

Math

Total

Alabama

2,393

593

572

1165

Alaska

2,971

547

533

1080

Arizona

20,466

563

553

1116

Arkansas

1,065

614

594

1208

California

226,699

531

524

1055

Colorado

5,896

606

595

1201

Connecticut

43,252

530

512

1041

Delaware

10,060

503

492

996

District of Columbia

4,801

482

468

950

Florida

147,058

520

497

1017

Georgia

63,805

535

515

1050

Hawaii

7,352

544

541

1085

Idaho

18,757

513

493

1005

Illinois

12,402

559

556

1115

Indiana

45,622

542

532

1074

Iowa

861

641

635

1275

Kansas

1,199

632

628

1260

Kentucky

1,608

631

616

1247

Louisiana

1,696

611

586

1198

Maine

13,826

513

499

1012

Maryland

42,919

536

524

1060

Massachusetts

56,024

555

551

1107

Michigan

110,082

509

495

1005

Minnesota

2,061

644

651

1295

Mississippi

716

634

607

1242

Missouri

1,990

640

631

1271

Montana

990

605

591

1196

Nebraska

680

629

625

1253

Nevada

6,245

563

553

1116

New Hampshire

14,758

532

520

1052

New Jersey

72,173

530

526

1056

New Mexico

2,342

577

561

1138

New York

135,141

528

523

1052

North Carolina

49,595

546

535

1081

North Dakota

123

635

621

1256

Ohio

14,545

578

570

1149

Oklahoma

2,776

530

517

1047

Oregon

15,866

560

548

1108

Pennsylvania

89,218

540

531

1071

Puerto Rico

2,913

515

487

1003

Rhode Island

7,205

539

524

1062

South Carolina

22,292

543

521

1064

South Dakota

237

612

603

1216

Tennessee

3,495

623

604

1228

Texas

204,409

513

507

1020

Utah

1,277

624

614

1238

Vermont

4,303

562

551

1114

Virginia

57,453

561

541

1102

Virgin Islands, US

752

483

442

924

Washington

43,911

541

534

1075

West Virginia

2,406

558

528

1086

Wisconsin

1780

642

649

1291

Wyoming

144

626

604

1230

SAT Score Changes And Background

It’s important to note that the total number of possible SAT points has changed several times over the past few years.

For a long time, the exam was based out of 1600 points. However, ten years ago, the College Board made the essay section mandatory and added it to students’ scores.

This addition increased the potential point total to 2400. Then, just this past year, responding to ACT competition, the SAT was again revised. This time, the essay section became optional again, reverting the highest possible score total back to 1600.

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For the revised SAT, released this past year, the average student received a score of 1060, with the top 25 percent of test takers receiving a 1200 or higher, and the bottom 25 percent scoring an 840 or below. The lowest possible score on the new SAT is a 400 (200 base points for Evidence-Based Reading and Writing, and 200 for Math).

Average SAT Scores For State School Admissions & Scholarship Programs

One reason you might be wondering about the average SAT score is because you’re applying for admission to a state college or university, or applying to a state-specific scholarship program.

If so, and you think you need to improve your score, visit our SAT prep courses and see what’s available before your next test!

A state’s average SAT score is affected by a variety of factors such as:

Size

Total Number of Student Exam Takers

Educational System Quality

So, based on the numbers above, if you’re applying to a college, university, or scholarship program in a state like Massachusetts, you face a more competitive environment than a student in, say, Louisiana.

Why? Because of the massive difference in the number of test-taking students in each state. Just keep in mind, in these situations, it’s your state’s average SAT score, not the national average, that matters.

Now, How Much Does This All Matter?

Other than for the reasons mentioned above, not much.

And that’s because overall, college and university admissions officials care little about national or state average SAT scores.

What colleges and universities care most about is the average SAT score of the students that apply to their schools. Generally, for more competitive schools, the average SAT score of admitted students will be higher than for less-competitive schools.

Where Do I Find This Information?

Most schools’ admissions websites will have score bands showing the average SAT scores of admitted students.

Typically, these bands will list the average scores for the 25th percentile, 50th percentile and 75th percentile of admitted students – Because your SAT score isn’t the only number admissions officers will be looking at, your GPA also plays a role in how close to a particular percentile you’ll need to be in order to gain admission.

Of course, it’s always best to shoot for the 50th percentile or higher. But, if you have a particularly high GPA, you might be able to get away with having an SAT score closer to the 25th percentile at a particular school, and still gain admission.

Conversely, students with comparatively low GPAs will want to shoot for the 75th percentile of SAT scores to remain competitive candidates for admission at any particular school. The biggest takeaway here is that neither score alone seals your admissions fate, but it’s better to boost both as high as possible for the best competitive edge.

Another excellent resource for this sort of information is your high school guidance counselor – At most high schools, the guidance office will have records of all the students from your school who were admitted, rejected, or waitlisted by particular colleges and universities over the past few years.

This information will also include those students’ average GPAs and SAT scores. At some schools today, this information is available online, through programs like Naviance. Using this data, you can get an idea of what some colleges and universities are realistically looking applicant-wise, and what you’ll need to do to fit.

What’s The Average Score For My Dream School?

Below is a list of some of the most competitive colleges and universities, ranked in the order of highest 75th percentile SAT score to lowest:

Rank

School

Average SAT Score

1

CalTech

1534

2

University of Chicago

1504

3

MIT

1503

4

Harvard

1501

5

Yale

1497

6

Princeton

1495

7

Vanderbilt

1475

8

The University of Washington

1474

9

Columbia

1471

10

Stanford

1466

11

Northwestern

1458

12

Rice

1454

13

Pomona

1454

14

Notre Dame

1450

15

Dartmouth

1446

16

Duke

1444

17

The University of Pennsylvania

1442

18

Williams College

1439

19

Amherst

1434

20

Carnegie Mellon

1432

21

Tufts

1428

22

Brown

1425

The schools with the highest 75th percentile scores aren’t necessarily the most competitive – those numbers are based on how many students are admitted out of those who apply.

These percentiles do affect a school’s U.S. News and World Report ranking, though, so colleges and universities definitely care about how they stack up there.

Remember, your SAT score isn’t the only thing colleges and universities look at when they evaluate your application. They’re also looking at:

GPA

High School Curriculum Competitiveness & Rigor

Athletics & Extracurricular Activities

Recommendation Letters

Personal Statement

So, don’t focus too much on this one number. It’s just one piece of the admissions puzzle. You’ll be better served by working on building up your score but also by working on this other package pieces, i.e. asking people for letters of recommendation, assessing your extracurricular activities, etc.

Where Should I Apply, Based On My SAT Score?

There are lots of things you should take into account when deciding which schools to apply to. Examples include:

Interested Subject of Study

Finances

Location

School Size

Talking purely about SAT scores, though, you should make a list of between nine and 12 schools, among three categories:

Reach Schools – schools where your scores are at either the 25th percentile mark or below

Try to have between three to four schools in each category to ensure you’ll be admitted somewhere for the fall.

Things To Keep In Mind

There are two major points to keep in mind when absorbing all this information:

Average scores are based on the results of past administrations of the SAT – The average SAT score for the particular administration of the exam that you’re sitting for this time around will be different than the average scores you’re looking at now. When the results of your test are released, averages could go up or down (although chances are that they won’t fluctuate all that much).

When it comes to particular schools, the average scores for admitted students will change from year to year, and the trend is almost always up – If a particularly large number of students apply to a school in a given year, the average SAT score of admitted students could go way up, making that school much tougher to get into. So when you make your list, it’s probably a good idea to have at least a few ‘target’ schools where you’re closer to the 60th-70th percentile of SAT scores.

How Do I Improve My Score?

As always: study, study, study.

Get a handle on the underlying academic concepts tested on the SAT, and bone up on the areas where you’re deficient. Then, you might want to consider signing up for a prep course, like those offered by Prep Expert.

Prep Expert’s courses will teach you test-taking strategies – how to notice trap answers or read passages more effectively, for example – and can go a long way toward improving your score.

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Shaan Patel

Shaan Patel is the founder of Prep Expert Test Preparation, a #1 bestselling SAT & ACT prep author, an MD/MBA student at Yale and USC, and winner of an investment deal with billionaire Mark Cuban on ABC’s Shark Tank. He raised his own SAT score from average to perfect using 100 strategies that we teach in our Prep Expert SAT and ACT courses.

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